As a conventional press machine, there exists a forging press apparatus for forging by converting a rotating motion of a crankshaft into a lifting-up-and-down motion of a slide (see, for example, Patent Document 1). The forging press apparatus has a swing rod into which a crankshaft is penetrated, with an upper end of the swing rod being rotatably supported on a slide by a shaft rod. At a lower end of the swing rod, an arcuate surface is formed with the shaft rod being at its center, and the slide is held in contact with the arcuate surface via a liner.
In the forging press apparatus, when the crankshaft is rotated, the slide is lifted up and down, with the swing rod being swung around the shaft rod. With this arrangement, as compared with a conventional apparatus in which a connecting rod is connected to the crankshaft and the slide is attached to the connecting rod, a distance from the crankshaft to the slide can be reduced, so that the entire height of the forging press apparatus can be reduced.
[Patent Document 1] JP-A-51-31975